POETRY.

CHRIST'S DOVE IN THE CLEFTS OF THE ROCK.

Sol. Song ii. 14.

THE church is redeemed and conquer'd with love,
And Jesus in scripture, he calls her his dove;
His heart and affections unto her are join'd,
And all his perfections are for her combin'd.
Arminians may quibble, and infidels mock,
His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.
Yes, here she was fix'd by eternal decree,
Predestin'd for glory, eternally free;

Secur'd in the Saviour before e'er she fell,

And therefore she never was destin'd for hell.

How sweet to rest here in the midst of the shock;
His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.

Tho' Satan, the fowler, who flies in the air,
May often surround us and tempt to despair,
Yet Jesus upholds us from sinking to woe-
The base of this rock is his Godhead we know.
How firm is the footing of his little flock-
His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.

The dove is select in the choice of her food,
The chaff is too light-it will do her no good;
And so the believer will fly from that barn,

Where time-serving hirelings now lock up the corn.
But Jesus the stores of his grace will unlock;

His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.

The dove is a creature that mourns for her mate,
And seeks him sincerely both early and late;

Just so will dear saints while in darkness they mourn,
Until their Beloved will to them return:

His presence they seek-at his temple they knock;
His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.

The dove has her wings that she mounts up on high,
And so the believer ascends to the sky,

For Christ is their refuge, pavilion, and tower,
And still he upholds by omnipotent power.
Arminians may quibble, and infidels mock,
His dove is secure in the cleft of the rock.

Orpington, Kent.

THE LAND OF THE BLESSED.
LAND of the bless'd! where Jesus is,
The point to which my love aspires;
The fountain-spring of all my bliss,
The sum of all my soul's desires.
Land of the bless'd! where angels are;
Where spirits of the just abide;
Where sounds celestial charm the ear,
And streams of living pleasures glide.

T. W.*

Land of the bless'd! where saints repose,
Where Jesus gives the weary rest;
Where the full fountain overflows

Of all that makes a creature blest.

Land of the bless'd! I've heard of thee,
And thitherward I fain would soar!
Thy boundless glories there to see,
And all thy blessedness explore.

Land of the bless'd! the distant view
I sometimes get, while grovelling here,
Urges my flight from things below,

And bids me seek my portion there.

Oh! speed my way, ye wings of love!
Untired, for this is not my rest;

Fly, till ye reach the land above,

And fix me there-LAND OF THE BLESS'D!

Halsted.

THE LORD'S DAY MORNING.

THE Lord's-day morning is come,
Ye saints rejoice and sing,
And celebrate in hymns of joy,
The triumphs of your King.

Come, raise your voices high,
And Jesu's vict'ries tell;
He by his own almighty arm,
Has vanquish'd death and hell.

Sing how he groan'd and bled,
To expiate our sin;

Sing, how in floods of crimson gore,
He wash'd us white and clean.

Sing how he bow'd his head

On Calv'ry's bloody tree;

And enter'd death's cold, dark abode,
For thee, my soul, for thee!

He burst the bands of death,

And more than conqueror rose;

And we thro' him shall conquerors be,
O'er all our hellish foes.

Then raise his triumphs high,

His deeds of praise resound;

And sound abroad his matchless fame,
To earth's remotest bound.

Lord! we thy name would praise,
On this sweet day of rest!

We would be in the Spirit found,
And with thy presence blest.

**B.

W. S.

THE

Spiritual Magazine;

OR,

SAINTS? TREASURY.

"There are Three that bear record in heaven; the FATHER, the WORD, and the HOLY GHOST: and these Three are One."

Earnesty contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints."

John v. 7.
Jude 3.

JANUARY, 1831.

(For the Spiritual Magazine.)

A CONCILIATORY ADDRESS TO THE SAINTS AND FAITHFUL BRETHREN IN CHRIST JESUS.

"Let brotherly love continue,”-Heb. xiii. 1.

WHO that has a heart born from above, but must admire the noble sentiment of David (and if under divine influence will delight in a similarity of feeling) when he expressed those sacred words, "Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity?" Nothing is more gratifying than to behold harmony and brotherly love among the saints, who are called into the fellowship of the gospel, and are passing through an enemy's country, hated and molested by its inhabitants, and sore troubled by its raging plague; and yet it is a lamentable fact, they oft need the affectionate admonition of their ever compassionate Father, " See that ye fall not out by the way." Alas! how little heed is taken to the repeated command of our tender and ever gracious Lord, which he urged upon his disciples, when on the eve of sweating blood, and shewing his love in deathly sorrow and dying agonies, "See that ye love one another."

Let us briefly take a view of the brethren, as delineated in the inspired oracles of truth. They are called, "the household of faiththe whole family in heaven and earth-the church of the first-born." The brethren are all loved with an everlasting love, and share alike the affections of Jehovah's heart, his thoughts and good will from all eternity. "I have loved thee with an everlasting love." The brethren were all chosen and ordained to eternal life by the unalterVOL. VII.-No. 81.

2 G

able decree and predestinating love of their Father: Christ, the elder brother, and they the juniors in him, as the one grand expression of paternal love. We are all brethren by eternal choice-the distinguished objects of sovereign grace, arising out of the discriminating love of God our Father. A chosen family, all personally and eternally chosen, distinctly foreknown, and ordained to constitute the one household of electing love.

Here, brethren, we take our rise, and see our origin in this separating act of the Eternal. He chose us from love, and loves us from choice all arising from "the good pleasure of his will," and terminating in the endless glorification of his character. The holy brethren were all blessed together in the first-born; blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places. Our Father's patrimony was exuberant, gracious, and immense. All the treasures of grace and glory he put into the hands of our spiritual Joseph; all things are ours. He blessed like a God. O brethren, we are all fellow heirs of our Father's possessions, wealth, and greatness: it hath pleased him that in Jesus our brother all fulness dwells.

We are all brethren, alike interested in the covenant of the Eternal Three. It was to hinder our eternal ruin that the cabinet of heaven met. The Father foreseeing the circumstances in which we should be involved, resolved on our recovery, and therefore agreed with the Son of his bosom for our redemption, who undertook to retrieve them from all the consequences of the fall. Our spiritual Judah took an oath for the forthcoming of his brethren, and became responsible for their deliverance, and final appearance before his throne. We are all covenant brethren, alike interested in the transactions of the everlasting agreement.

We are brethren, identified with our great Brother Ransomer, on whom devolved the right of redemption. He, our glorious near Kinsman-Redeemer, became our Interposer, and Almighty Recoverer, and everlasting Saviour, fired with love eternal and brotherly affection. Behold, he leaves the bosom of the Father, and all the glories of his native kingdom, to make known the Father's love, and break up the infinite glories of his name to Zion, exclaiming, as he leaves his blissful throne, "I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the congregation will I sing praise unto thee;" for it behoved him, according to covenant settlement and promise, to be made in all things like unto his brethren for our eternal salvation.

Dearly beloved brethren, he became "a Brother born for adversity," put on the habiliments of mortality, came into the nearest affinity to us, entered into our weaknesses, sorrows, temptations, and griefs, that he might sympathize with us, and compassionately feel for us in all our exercises and troubles. O the tender heart of our dearest Brother! Brethren, "Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ; though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich." Ye brethren, that are hard set for wilderness fare, contemplate your Brother in this

sanctified vale, who hungered in the wilderness, and passed through this harmless state, even to its most pinching extent, even so as to need angelic aid; and mark the interested heart of your heavenly Brother in glory, in what he declared to some of his brethren in the desert-"I know thy poverty." He never disowns his brethren, however poor and dejected.

Not only did he come in the likeness of sinful flesh, and took on him our infirmities, but he " became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross," to redeem us from the curse of the law, by enduring its penalty; to buy us out of the hands of inflexible justice, by pouring into its lap a fulness of satisfaction; to deliver us from this present evil world, to wrest us from the grasp of hell, and save us from all the consequences of our Eden alliance. He had a brother's heart even to die for us. This is Joseph, our Brother, whom our sins sold into an Egypt of misery inconceivable; yes, his love was stronger than death; it dried up all the infinite sea of wrath -broke down all the barriers of hell-burst the eternal bars of death asunder-rolled back the impenetrable gates of bliss, and hurled into oblivion all the mountains of his brethren's crimes-raised up from the brink of ruin a countless host on its infinite shoulders, and bore them in spotless grandeur to the throne of unsullied Deity, to share the bliss of a Father's heart, and participate in the affections of a Brother's love to eternity. This was brotherly love in all its vehemence of glory, and surpassing excellency, blazing in meridian splendour and unquenchable greatness. We are brethren, alike redeemed by this great High Priest over the house of God.

We are all brethren, alike interested in the heart of Jesus, now ascended to his Father and our Father, for our eternal welfare, to carry into effect all the great purposes of his accomplished redemption.

The brethren are quickened to life everlasting by the Spirit of adoption, and brought forth into spiritual union to all the living in Jerusalem they are brought up in vital relation to all the precious sons of Zion, dwell under the family roof of their covenant Father, and partake of all the benefits of his vast establishment. They are all taught of the same Spirit-worship at the same altar-wash in the same fountain-wear the same attire-live on the same provisiondrink at the same chrystal river-bear the image of their Father— confess the utter ruin of their elder standing—their awful exposure by personal transgression-their total impotency to meet the claims of law and justice, and their unavoidable destruction without a substitute and interposer. Under the discovery of their destitution, and forebodings of eternal ruin, they are led to the cross, and read, in the sin-expiating death of Jesus, their everlasting remission and release. They renounce all fleshly confidences, and gladly embrace a Saviour crucified, in his sin-atoning merits, cleansing blood, and immaculate righteousness, as their everlasting salvation. The glorious gospel, in its all-abounding provision, is thrown open to satiate their enlarged desires, and the grace of a Father's heart overpowers their